Lake Activities

We spent our weekend visiting grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins in Vermont.  It was a HOT weekend, so most of our recreation took place on Lake Champlain so we could cool down. Nana and Gramps got to take us out on their new boat, which led to Madeleine's first opportunity with tubing!

She really wanted to try tubing, but got cold feet once she realized she needed to wear a life preserver.  Julia didn't help matters by freaking out, either.

ETHAN: Madeleine, this life preserver looks a little tight on you.  Let's find one that fits better.
MADELEINE: But I like this one.
ETHAN: Yeah. but honey, if you want to go tubing, you need a life preserver that fits so it can keep you afloat if you fall off.
JULIA: I don't WANT her to go tubing!  I'm scared she's gonna DROWN!
ETHAN: Julia.  She's not going to drown.  Your sister is a strong swimmer.
JULIA: But what if she falls under the boat?
ETHAN: That's not gonna happen.
JULIA: But what if-
ETHAN: Julia.  Calm down.
MADELEINE: But why do I need to wear a different life preserver?
ETHAN: Just in case you fall off the tube.
MADELEINE: But I don't want to wear a tight one.
ME: Honey, you need one because it's possible you'll fall into the lake.
MADELEINE: Is there a big likelihood of falling?
ME: Well, yeah...I always fell at least once when I went tubing.

That was it.  Madeleine was FREAKED.  No tubing for her.

Aunt Sarah came to the rescue like a MAJOR hero!  Terrified as she is of open water, Aunt Sarah decided that she would try tubing first to set an example for Madeleine and Julia.  Trembling on the inside, Sarah put a bright smile on her face and took the plunge as the first one to try tubing:

This was exactly what Madeleine needed.  After seeing Aunt Sarah tackle the tube, Madeleine gained the courage to try.  And a good thing she did.  She had an ABSOLUTE BLAST:

"This was the BEST DAY OF MY LIFE!" Madeleine exclaimed in utter glee to EVERYONE she encountered after we got off the boat. 

Meanwhile, Julia decided there was no way she could summon the courage to go tubing, but she opted to jump off the boat with Aunt Sarah once it was still in the middle of the lake.  Except that when it was time to jump, Julia was frozen with terror.  She held hands with Aunt Sarah, but when they got to the count of 3, Julia's body went stiff with fright and she couldn't move.  She eventually determined that Aunt Sarah would need to lead the jump and pull her along.

AUNT SARAH: Okay, One, two, THREE! (jumping first and pulling Julia in with her.)

Aunt Sarah, who had no life jacket on, fully submerged under the wather.  Julia, who had a life jacket on, simply bobbed about without her head going under.

AUNT SARAH: Woo-hoo!  We did it!
JULIA:  (in near terror) That was SCARY! (frantically doing a panicked swim back to the boat ladder.)

Yea, that's right.  Julia, who DIVES OFF DOCKS INTO PONDS AND LAKES FOR SWIM TEAM, found it terrifying to jump with a life jacket on and not even go under water.  This kid is going to do an OPEN WATER MILE SWIM this coming week, for the SECOND TIME in her life.  Somehow none of that is scary, but this sure was.

So, to sum things up. 

Madeleine:





Julia:

Jumping into still water with a life jacket and not even going fully under water: TERROR.


Seems about right.